Preliminary design of high rise buildings for global adaptation using the linear static method

Preliminary sizing of the members of high-rise buildings for adaptation in Nigeria and other countries with similar earth tremor data is carried out in this work using the linear static (lateral force) method. The studied building model comprises a regular, symmetric 50 storey Steel Dual-Concentric (chevron) Brace Frame, SD-CBF. European wide flange beam section of HE220M, column section HE260M and brace section HE180B were realised as initial design sections which are structurally safe. Results indicate that the aforementioned sections, though structurally safe can be made more robust for greater safety by applying a factor of safety ranging from 1.25 to 1.5 depending on available investment and seismicity of the environment. This is to justify safety of lives and properties.Keywords: High-rise, Earth-tremor, Linear Static Method and SD-CBF

Effect of Nanosilica on Mechanical and Microstructural Properties of Cement Mortar

Recently, nanomaterials (such as nanosilica) are receiving special attention because of their ability to improve the performance of concrete compared with traditional mineral admixtures. In this work, a number of specimens were prepared to study the behavior of cement mortar containing nanosilica. The cement replacement by nanosilica of 3% and 5% by weight of cement was used. The mechanical and microstructural properties of the specimens were investigated. An experimental result from literature was utilized to predict the transport of chloride into reinforced concrete structures modified with nanosilica using COMSOL multiphysics commercial package. The experimental results show that cement mortars containing nanosilica have higher strength than ordinary portland cement mortars. Also, the SEM images confirmed the improvement in the microstructure of mortar with nanosilica

Supersymmetry of Noncompact MQCD-like Membrane Instantons and Heat Kernel Asymptotics

We perform a heat kernel asymptotics analysis of the nonperturbative superpotential obtained from wrapping of an M2-brane around a supersymmetric noncompact three-fold embedded in a (noncompact) G_2-manifold as obtained in [1], the three-fold being the one relevant to domain walls in Witten's MQCD [2], in the limit of small "zeta", a complex constant that appears in the Riemann surfaces relevant to defining the boundary conditions for the domain wall in MQCD. The MQCD-like configuration is interpretable, for small but non-zero zeta as a noncompact/"large" open membrane instanton, and for vanishing zeta, as the type IIA D0-brane (for vanishing M-theory cicle radius). We find that the eta-function Seeley de-Witt coefficients vanish, and we get a perfect match between the zeta-function Seeley de-Witt coefficients (up to terms quadratic in zeta) between the Dirac-type operator and one of the two Laplace-type operators figuring in the superpotential. This is an extremely strong signature of residual supersymmetry for the nonperturbative configurations in M-theory considered in this work.Comment: 21 pages, LaTeX; v3: several clarifying remarks added, to appear in JHE

SAM Lectures on Extremal Black Holes in d=4 Extended Supergravity

We report on recent results in the study of extremal black hole attractors in N=2, d=4 ungauged Maxwell-Einstein supergravities. For homogeneous symmetric scalar manifolds, the three general classes of attractor solutions with non-vanishing Bekenstein-Hawking entropy are discussed. They correspond to three (inequivalent) classes of orbits of the charge vector, which sits in the relevant symplectic representation R_{V} of the U-duality group. Other than the 1/2-BPS one, there are two other distinct non-BPS classes of charge orbits, one of which has vanishing central charge. The complete classification of the U-duality orbits, as well as of the moduli spaces of non-BPS attractors (spanned by the scalars which are not stabilized at the black hole event horizon), is also reviewed. Finally, we consider the analogous classification for N>2-extended, d=4 ungauged supergravities, in which also the 1/N-BPS attractors yield a related moduli space.Comment: 1+29 pages, 8 Tables. Contribution to the Proceedings of the School on Attractor Mechanism 2007 (SAM2007), June 18--22 2007, INFN--LNF, Frascati, Ital

A randomised controlled trial to investigate the use of acute coronary syndrome therapy in patients hospitalised with COVID-19: the C19-ACS trial

BACKGROUND: Patients hospitalised with COVID-19 suffer thrombotic complications. Risk factors for poor outcomes are shared with coronary artery disease. OBJECTIVES: To investigate efficacy of an acute coronary syndrome regimen in patients hospitalised with COVID-19 and coronary disease risk factors. PATIENTS/METHODS: A randomised controlled open-label trial across acute hospitals (UK and Brazil) added aspirin, clopidogrel, low-dose rivaroxaban, atorvastatin, and omeprazole to standard care for 28-days. Primary efficacy and safety outcomes were 30-day mortality and bleeding. The key secondary outcome was a daily clinical status (at home, in hospital, on intensive therapy unit admission, death). RESULTS: 320 patients from 9 centres were randomised. The trial terminated early due to low recruitment. At 30 days there was no significant difference in mortality (intervention: 11.5% vs control: 15%, unadjusted OR 0.73, 95%CI 0.38 to 1.41, p=0.355). Significant bleeds were infrequent and not significantly different between the arms (intervention: 1.9% vs control 1.9%, p>0.999). Using a Bayesian Markov longitudinal ordinal model, it was 93% probable that intervention arm participants were more likely to transition to a better clinical state each day (OR 1.46, 95% CrI 0.88 to 2.37, Pr(Beta>0)=93%; adjusted OR 1.50, 95% CrI 0.91 to 2.45, Pr(Beta>0)=95%) and median time to discharge home was two days shorter (95% CrI -4 to 0, 2% probability that it was worse). CONCLUSIONS: Acute coronary syndrome treatment regimen was associated with a reduction in the length of hospital stay without an excess in major bleeding. A larger trial is needed to evaluate mortality

Determinants of outcomes following surgery for type A acute aortic dissection: the UK National Adult Cardiac Surgical Audit

Aims  Operability of type A acute aortic dissections (TAAAD) is currently based on non-standardized decision-making process, and it lacks a disease-specific risk evaluation model that can predict mortality. We investigated patient, intraoperative data, surgeon, and centre-related variables for patients who underwent TAAAD in the UK. Methods and results We identified 4203 patients undergoing TAAAD surgery in the UK (2009–18), who were enrolled into the UK National Adult Cardiac Surgical Audit dataset. The primary outcome was operative mortality. A multivariable logistic regression analysis was performed with fast backward elimination of variables and the bootstrap-based optimism-correction was adopted to assess model performance. Variation related to hospital or surgeon effects were quantified by a generalized mixed linear model and risk-adjusted funnel plots by displaying the individual standardized mortality ratio against expected deaths. Final variables retained in the model were: age [odds ratio (OR) 1.02, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.02–1.03; P < 0.001]; malperfusion (OR 1.79, 95% CI 1.51–2.12; P < 0.001); left ventricular ejection fraction (moderate: OR 1.40, 95% CI 1.14–1.71; P = 0.001; poor: OR 2.83, 95% CI 1.90–4.21; P < 0.001); previous cardiac surgery (OR 2.29, 95% CI 1.71–3.07; P < 0.001); preoperative mechanical ventilation (OR 2.76, 95% CI 2.00–3.80; P < 0.001); preoperative resuscitation (OR 3.36, 95% CI 1.14–9.87; P = 0.028); and concomitant coronary artery bypass grafting (OR 2.29, 95% CI 1.86–2.83; P < 0.001). We found a significant inverse relationship between surgeons but not centre annual volume with outcomes. Conclusions  Patient characteristics, intraoperative factors, cardiac centre, and high-volume surgeons are strong determinants of outcomes following TAAAD surgery. These findings may help refining clinical decision-making, supporting patient counselling and be used by policy makers for quality assurance and service provision improvement

Lectures on on Black Holes, Topological Strings and Quantum Attractors (2.0)

In these lecture notes, we review some recent developments on the relation between the macroscopic entropy of four-dimensional BPS black holes and the microscopic counting of states, beyond the thermodynamical, large charge limit. After a brief overview of charged black holes in supergravity and string theory, we give an extensive introduction to special and very special geometry, attractor flows and topological string theory, including holomorphic anomalies. We then expose the Ooguri-Strominger-Vafa (OSV) conjecture which relates microscopic degeneracies to the topological string amplitude, and review precision tests of this formula on ``small'' black holes. Finally, motivated by a holographic interpretation of the OSV conjecture, we give a systematic approach to the radial quantization of BPS black holes (i.e. quantum attractors). This suggests the existence of a one-parameter generalization of the topological string amplitude, and provides a general framework for constructing automorphic partition functions for black hole degeneracies in theories with sufficient degree of symmetry.Comment: 103 pages, 8 figures, 21 exercises, uses JHEP3.cls; v5: important upgrade, prepared for the proceedings of Frascati School on Attractor Mechanism; Sec 7 was largely rewritten to incorporate recent progress; more figures, more refs, and minor changes in abstract and introductio

Traumatic physical health consequences of intimate partner violence against women: what is the role of community-level factors?

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Intimate partner violence (IPV) against women is a serious public health issue with recognizable direct health consequences. This study assessed the association between IPV and traumatic physical health consequences on women in Nigeria, given that communities exert significant influence on the individuals that are embedded within them, with the nature of influence varying between communities.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Cross-sectional nationally-representative data of women aged 15 - 49 years in the 2008 Nigeria Demographic and Health Survey was used in this study. Multilevel logistic regression analysis was used to assess the association between IPV and several forms of physical health consequences.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Bruises were the most common form of traumatic physical health consequences. In the adjusted models, the likelihood of sustaining bruises (OR = 1.91, 95% CI = 1.05 - 3.46), wounds (OR = 2.54, 95% CI = 1.31 - 4.95), and severe burns (OR = 3.20, 95% CI = 1.63 - 6.28) was significantly higher for women exposed to IPV compared to those not exposed to IPV. However, after adjusting for individual- and community-level factors, women with husbands/partners with controlling behavior, those with primary or no education, and those resident in communities with high tolerance for wife beating had a higher likelihood of experiencing IPV, whilst mean community-level education and women 24 years or younger were at lower likelihood of experiencing IPV.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Evidence from this study shows that exposure to IPV is associated with increased likelihood of traumatic physical consequences for women in Nigeria. Education and justification of wife beating were significant community-level factors associated with traumatic physical consequences, suggesting the importance of increasing women's levels of education and changing community norms that justify controlling behavior and IPV.</p